2027: FG Tells Students to Mobilise 10m Votes for Tinubu
The Federal Government has urged Nigerian students to mobilise 10 million votes for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
The call was made by the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, in Abuja when the leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS, and other student organisations visited him.
According to the minister, young Nigerians have a direct stake in the outcome of the poll.
He said supporting the continuation of the Tinubu administration would be important to sustaining reforms and investments in education, particularly those targeted at student financing, skills development, infrastructure and access to tertiary education.
According to him, Nigerian students should pay close attention to the 2027 election because decisions taken by the next administration would have a direct impact on their education, employment opportunities, skills and future prospects.
Alausa maintained that the Tinubu administration had demonstrated a commitment to tackling both immediate challenges facing students and longstanding weaknesses in the education sector.
He said the government’s interventions had moved beyond the traditional focus on classrooms and academic facilities to areas such as student loans, accommodation, technical and vocational education, entrepreneurship, campus transportation, renewable energy and the protection of the academic calendar.
The minister pointed to the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, NELFUND, as one of the major initiatives introduced under the administration. He disclosed that about N200 billion had been committed to the scheme, with more than 1.6 million students benefiting from it.
He added that recent presidential directives aimed at creating additional funding sources would further strengthen the student loan scheme. Alausa also assured students that the monthly upkeep allowance under NELFUND would continue.
The minister said the government had also committed more than N200 billion to expanding student accommodation, while over N150 billion had been invested in Technical and Vocational Education and Training, TVET, infrastructure.
He further highlighted the Student Venture Capital Grant, which he said was designed to help students transform innovative ideas into businesses rather than depend solely on paid employment after graduation. According to him, the government was considering raising the maximum amount available under the grant in its next phase.
Alausa also said efforts were being made to improve the everyday conditions students face on campuses. He disclosed that renewable energy projects were being expanded across federal tertiary institutions to provide more reliable electricity for laboratories, workshops, libraries and hostels.
He added that more tricycles would be deployed to campuses to reduce transportation difficulties faced by students.
On academic stability, the minister said continued engagement with the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, had contributed to maintaining stability in the university system. He said this was consistent with Tinubu’s commitment that a programme designed to last four years should be completed within four years.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Student Engagement, Comrade Sunday Asefon, said the visit was intended to deepen communication between the Presidency, the Ministry of Education and student leaders.
Asefon praised NANS and other student organisations for their role in representing students and said their cooperation with the government remained important in identifying problems in tertiary institutions and developing practical solutions.
NANS President, Comrade Babatunde Afeez Akinteye, also commended the Tinubu administration and the education minister for initiatives such as NELFUND and TVET.
Akinteye said the student loan programme had provided significant assistance to beneficiaries, particularly through the monthly upkeep allowance, which he described as an important relief for students struggling with financial pressures.
He nevertheless raised concerns over Federal Scholarship Awards, illegal admissions and accreditation problems in some institutions. He called for stronger regulatory measures to prevent students from being admitted into programmes that lack the necessary approval or capacity.
The NANS president said student leaders were prepared to work with the government to address the challenges affecting students across the country.
Responding to the concerns, Alausa said the ministry was already working on the issues raised, stressing that matters capable of affecting the education and future of Nigerian students would receive serious attention.
He said steps were being taken to address funding difficulties affecting the Federal Scholarship Awards, improve admission procedures and conduct a comprehensive review of the accreditation system.
The minister said the review would help prevent students from enrolling in unapproved programmes and discovering after several years of study that their courses lacked the required accreditation.
Alausa assured the student leaders that the ministry would keep its channels of communication open and continue engaging them on issues concerning their welfare and education.
The minister’s call for student support for Tinubu comes shortly after NANS rejected former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s proposal to restore the petrol subsidy if elected president in 2027.
NANS, through Akinteye, argued that bringing back the old subsidy system without addressing the weaknesses that made it financially unsustainable would not provide a lasting solution to Nigeria’s economic problems.
“If I win the presidential election, I will restore the subsidy. And anyone who stole Nigeria’s subsidy funds must return the money,” Atiku had said.
NANS acknowledged that subsidy removal had increased economic pressure on Nigerians but maintained that returning to the previous arrangement could recreate the same problems.
Akinteye said, “However, the real measure of the reform should not be the savings alone, but what the government does with those savings.”
He called for the resources saved from subsidy removal to be channelled into education, healthcare, infrastructure, agriculture and other areas capable of improving living conditions.
He also urged presidential aspirants to present sustainable economic policies rather than relying on promises aimed mainly at providing immediate relief.
